A Welsh beauty business started by two sisters from their garage has grown into a worldwide operation that is worth millions. Sophie and Hannah Pycroft founded Spectrum Collections 10 years ago and it has sold over two million makeup brushes and accessories already in 2021, while the company generated its highest year of sales in the UK, worth over £2.5m. Sales growth in the US market has proved even more impressive, with figures above £1.5m so far this year. Spectrum’s brushes have featured behind the scenes at events such as London Fashion Week and the MTV European Music Awards, as well as in the production of Netflix’s drama Bridgerton.
Prior to establishing the firm, the sisters worked around photography and website design in London, where they came into conversation with various beauty make-up professionals. These interactions led Sophie and Hannah to create a range of brightly coloured and distinctive make-up brushes that was priced at a lower rate and made from synthetic fibres. At present, Spectrum gauges most of its sales through social media, using a team comprised of nine, entirely Welsh personnel who are based around and about Barry, where both sisters live.
Sophie and Hannah chose to base their business in Barry and opted not to relocate to London. They felt that by remaining in Wales, they maintained a deeper connection to their heritage whilst also keeping Spectrum grounded. Their marketing strategy is centred around getting the products to celebrity make-up artists and influencers, while the brush sets are designed to catch the eye with their broad palette of bright colours and carrying the added promise of being vegan and cruelty-free. Spectrum has also sought to move away from licensing deals and has instead begun to concentrate on its own designer range.
The sisters’ end aim is to enhance the global expansion of the firm, which currently divides business at 60% in the UK, 30% in the United States and the rest of the world, aside from Canada, picking up 10%. Sophie and Hannah preferentially work together as a unit. Cohesively believing that collaboration with each other is the most satisfying part of running the business, as Sophie noted that they “normally agree on everything because we’re very, very similar. Neither one of us would want to do it without the other
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